campaign in alabama or mississippi. there are also caucuses in hawaii today. the military says the american soldier accused of gunning down 16 afghan civilians mostly women and children could face the death penalty. witnesses say the shooting spree took place in two villages in kandahar province sunday morning. the soldier based out of fort lewis in washington state was a trained sniper who helped train local villagers to defend themselves. new reports from "the wall street journal" are quoting witnesses who say it wasn't just one but several u.s. soldiers who burst into homes in the middle of the night and opened fire. president obama says this is nothing like the infamous massacre during the vietnam war in which several u.s. troops killed hundreds of villagers. but he also says this weekend's attack won't speed up plans to bring american troops home. >> this has been an enormous strain for a decade now on our men and women in uniform.

>> the united states vows this incident will not force u.s. soldiers out of afghanistan ahead of schedule. right now u.s. troops are scheduled to wrap up their mission in afghanistan in 2014. concern for the safety of homeless female veterans is prompting a senate committee hearing soon according to recent veterans affairs reports, some women who are now homeless are living in men's only homeless shelters. many of those shelters house women and men on the same floor and the same bedroom. both men and women are also forced to share bathrooms with insufficient or no locks on them. inspectors found women who were housed in some hopeless shelters simply because staff didn't know the facilities were supposed to be only for men. the hearing is scheduled for wednesday. today we're expected to learn new estimates about the cost of reforming health care in america. on monday the obama administration released a blueprint for states to sign up millions of uninsured americans for medical coverage through

the president's health care law. beginning january 1, 2014, millions will be able to buy health insurance through new federally mandated state-based markets called exchanges. more than 30 million uninsured people are eventually expected to receive coverage. right now just 13 states and the district have plans in motion. other states are waiting to see what happens after the supreme court hears arguments on the constitutionality of the health care plan. that takes place in about two weeks. a bill which would make it illegal in maryland to smoke with anyone younger than 8 in your car has received preliminary aprafl in the state -- approval in the state senate. supporters say secondhand smoke is harmful to children of all ages and it will be easy for police to monitor since children under age 8 ever also required to be in a car seat. opponents say it amounts to too much government intrusion in personal space. montgomery county prosecutors are reluctantly dropping the charges against the part-time teacher accused

of having sex with a student in rockville. they say they're only dropping them because after legal technicality. the 48-year-old was charged with having sex with a 16-year- old. prosecutors say the legal technicality deals with him being a part-time employee at the school. >> a teacher, principal, administrator or full-time student but as a part-time employee, he falls into a loophole. there's no crime with which he can be charged. >> montgomery county public schools will conduct its own investigation into whether or not the teacher engaged in inappropriate behavior with a 16-yard. he remains -- 16-year-old. he remains on leave but he tells us he's never done anything inappropriate with any student either as an athlete or that he has coached one. a northern virginia woman who caused her son's death by accidentally leaving the child in a minivan for seven hours will not serve any jail time. karen murphy's 2-year-old son

ryan was left strapped in a car seat while murphy went to work last june in bristow, virginia. she pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor child neglect charges. 15 people are in custody in connection with a ongoing operation targeting people in businesses which sell stolen property. d.c. police showed off some of the stolen merchandise during a news conference last night. cathy lanier said officers served search warrants on at least 15 businesses and recalled more than 100 cell phones, seven ipads and many other devices. it is 4:34. here's a look at some of the other things making news. lawyers for penn state assistant coach jerry sandusky were in court yesterday and they were asking for some specific information about where and when those alleged crimes took place. they also want the names of the people who were present or nearby at the time.

they asked the judge to force prosecutors to turn over evidence before the trial starts in may. sandusky denies all of these allegations in this case and remains on home detention. the wrongful death lawsuit against virginia tech will continue. yesterday the judge hearing the case refused to throw it out at the request of lawyers representing the university. they claim the parents of two students who were murdered in the 2007 shootings did not prove their case. but the judge didn't buy that and said the case will go to the jury. the parents are demanding the school account for its actions the day of the massacre. coming up on 4:36. at 4:40 if you preordered the new apple ipad, you're going to have to wait a few take days to get yours. >> at 4:48, a heated exchange at one local store ends with a customer receiving an insulting receipt. keep it right here. it's going to abwarm day. -- to be a warm day.

4:38. very mild. we have 50s and even some 60s right now. showers are pulling away. we'll look at live doppler in a few minutes. today warm and breezy. 07 by noon. average high 55. we'll be 76 at 3:00. high around 78. a chance for a few afternoon showers, even thunderstorms. we'll have more on that and your seven-day forecast in a few minutes. let's go to sam sam with time saver -- monika santami with time saver traffic. >> reporter: traffic moving well down to the point where the lanes divide. no problems to report on the beltway north of town between college park and bethesda. more on maryland roads coming up in my next report. back to you. >> thank you, monika. it is time for the first your money segment of the

morning. >> good morning. >> good news from greece. we're happy to hear that. greece wrapping up its biggest debt in history. this clears the way for greece to receive a second bailout from european leaders and the news is helping to lift stocks around the world. checking the numbers from here at home, the dow stands at 12,959, added 37 points in trading yesterday. nasdaq was down by almost 5 and the s&p 500 was basically flat on the day. the obama administration wants to make it easier for workers to find new jobs. the white house says the current jumble of federal programs is too confusing so this new plan would combine two existing perhaps for people who have been laid off as a result of downsizing, jobs moving overseas or other reasons. it would offer money for retraining, stay pends to help with child care transportation costs and money for job search and relocation.

most changes would need congressional approval and about $28 billion over ten years. complaints filed by ford taurus owners have prompted an investigation by federal safety regulators. the national highway traffic safety administration says 14 people have complained of a sticking throttle. the ntsa is looking at the 2005 taurus as well as six other model years. there have been no reports of crashes or injuries. if you preordered the new ipad, you'll have to wait a little longer. the demand is so strong, apple won't be able to deliver the preorders before the ipad hits the store shelves on friday. preorders will ship next monday. instead we are hearing a couple of them are going to be making the stores so some people are going to get lucky. some are just going to have to wait. >> and they'll get to brag. thanks, jessica. >> the ipad joneses. well, we all know certain habits which can be bad for

your heart. there's a new study that suggests something many of us consume every single day can increase heart disease. we're back with that and your weather first. stay with us.

. good morning. welcome back to 9news now. when i wacked out the door, i was -- backed out the door, i was surprised to see raindrops but howard mentioned it yesterday. >> we're right sometimes. >> i put the air conditioning on. i know it's not that warm but the dampness. >> showers are just about out of here for now. though this afternoon we may run into another shower, even a

thunderstorm today. we're going to be that warm. temperatures could be 25 degrees above average today and even a couple days later this week. incredible warmth. don't put your plans -- don't start thinking this is the time to get the gardens going. it's tooer. we could still have a -- to early. we could still have a frost or freeze despite of how warm we've been. we've got skies which are going to become partly sunny here in a little while. got a few showers now. maybe even mostly cloudy to partly sunny. 50s and 60s. yeah, 50s and 60s at the bus stop. sunrise 7:22 a.m. daylight saving time. our day planner sunny and about 60. a few clouds, partly sunny and 60 at 8:00. by noon mostly sunny, 70 degrees. southwesterly winds at 11 miles an hour. it is going to be packed outside here during the lunch hour. then as we head toward the afternoon, 77. even by 4:00, 5:00, 6:00 there could be a couple of showers, maybe an isolated thunderstorm

or two around. by #k, mostly cloudy, 71 degrees. winds lightly to the northwest tonight. there are the showers we've been watching the last couple of hours. heaviest stuff is south and east of d.c. by a good margin here from easton down into the lower eastern shore. here's leonard town toward solomon's. south of colonial beacher clearing out as well -- beech you're clearing out as well. in the fredricksburg area some showers. these guys around warren top, this is all moving -- warrenton, this is all moving towards the east. just a little sprinkle over potomac and great falls. temperatures, mike was talking about how mild it is. still 60 in hagerstown. 63 culpeper and fredricksburg. we're sitting at 58 degrees while easton with the rain at 55. when you start from a jumping point here, you know we're going to be very warm this afternoon. here you go. look at the michael & son weather camera.

we've got some clouds with good visibility. 58 at reagan national. winds are south at 7. your dew points in the low 50s. so feeling a lot more like -- we talked about it yesterday -- may than march. except on the west coast where this storm system is coming -- this is a powerful one -- coming on shore with even some snow in the central oregon coast this morning. that's some heavy rain and high wind. it's a big storm here. then the other storm system we're watching really is not pulling up through the great lakes. we're just feeling like the tail end of this. notice this line of showers and storms in northeastern ohio. this is going to be pushing through us. then we'll watch that stuff for later this afternoon. here's the future cast. nice clearing by midday. we'll get into the afternoon. there it goes. here we are at 4:00. some the threat for some showers and storms around for the afternoon. this thing slides south and east of us by 9:00. still could be a lingering shower or two in southern maryland and then we'll see some clearing for the overnight period. as we look at the forecast, it's pretty toasty for this

time of year. we should be about 55. 78, a chance of showers and storms this afternoon to early this evening. tonight we're going to dip back down into the 50s, even 40s north and west. tomorrow a beautiful pleasant, spectacular wednesday. high about 74 degrees. on thursday another gorgeous day. high about 77. i think those cherry blossoms will be out in a week or so. i think they're coming real early this year. better chance of showers 68. right now saturday morning doesn't look bad. maybe 50s, 60s for the race. slight chance after shower in the afternoon on st. patrick's day. on sunday and monday still we're rolling along nice low to mid-70s. let's check in with monika santami. she's somewhere out there with time saver traffic. >> reporter: i've been sent out on an adventure, howard. out on the beltway.

i'm at the intersection of 495 and i-66. we're going to talk about the express lanes at three different intersections. we'll get to that later. first of all, a look at the beltway which is fine. there was some construction on the outer loop at route 202. that should be cleared up shortly. let's take a live look at beltway near route 50. we're doing fine the entire stretch of the prince george's county side, east side between college park and the wilson bridge. other than that construction and also a live look on the northbound side of 395. no worries right now leaving the beltway to the 14th street bridge. in my next report, we'll take a look at virginia roads coming up next. back to you. >> thank you, monika. most people have had a bad experience or two with a salesman but it's hard to imagine anything much worse than what a woman experienced monday in montgomery county. >> the woman told 9news the whole thing started with some harmless grumbling about the county bag tax and led to a pretty insulting experience.

matt jablow has her story. she got a whole lot more than she bargained for when she bought an adapter at this radio shack in hillandale. the problem began as she was paying for the adapter when this salesman told her about the 5 cent bag tax in montgomery county, a tax she said she had never heard of and she lives in baltimore. >> five cents? i just paid sales tax. five cents for a bag? >> he said yes, this is montgomery county. >> reporter: she said after going back and forth with the salesman, she decided just to forget the whole thing and get her money back for the cassette adapter. that's when she said the story took an extremely and unusual turn because when the salesman gave her back her money, he also gave her the receipt for the refund at the bottom of which he typed in ugly itch ghetto hood u.s.a. tattoo maryland.

>> obviously he was talking about me. >> reporter: the salesman claims he was only kidding but she didn't. the manager kicked us out when we asked for an explanation about what happened. and she says he wouldn't talk to her either. >> the manager didn't want anything to do with it. >> reporter: she is now in touch with radio shack's corporate office in hopes of getting the salesman fired. even if that happens she says her days of shopping a the radio shack are over. >> i want nothing to do with radio shack ever again. >> reporter: matt jablow, 9news now. >> he tried to contact radio shack but our calls were not returned. a new report suggests doctors need to be more careful when prescribing certain painkillers to older patients. researchers in canada found older patients who were given oxycodone after surgery were 4% more likely to be still using the drugs a year later.

the study's author says painkillers can be helpful but long-term use can lead to addictions. the most famous soup brand in the country is going to remove a key ingredient from its cans over time. packaging digest reports campbell soup will phase out bpa and start using alternative. it's been debated for years whether bpa or buy face knoll -- by -- bpa can disrupt our or honeys. we all know drinking soda and other sweet drinks can lead to obesity, now a new study from the harvard school of public health suggests it could also hurt your heart. researchers followed more than 42,000 men between the ages of 40 and 57 over a 20-year period. they discovered that drinking just won 12 ounce sugar sweetened drink a day increases a man's risk of heart disease by 20%. the study doesn't conclude that you have to eliminate all sugar

drinks from your diet but researchers do suggest at the most only drinking two a week. how about some good news instead. americans are living longer. a new study from the center for disease control looked at the mortality rates in the last 75 years and finds the overall iive of dying from disease -- risk of dying from disease dropped. but the leading causes of death have not changed. heart disease and cancer remain number one and number two killers every year of the study. new data says that metal hip replacements fail much more often than those made of plastic or ceramic. the authors are calling for a ban on so-called metal on metal up plants after reviewing 4,000 hip replacements. the study also found the failure rate was about four times higher for women. if you plan to be celebrating with adult beverages this holiday weekend for st. patrick's day, free cab rides will be available for people who think they sort of had too much to drink during st. patrick's day celebrations.

the washington regional alcohol program will offer its sober ride service from saturday 6:00 p.m. till sunday morning 6:00 a.m. call 1-800-200-taxi and that covers the cost of the cab ride up to $30. it is time for the question of the morning. >> 25% -- there is-- >> 25% less. >> there is 25% less of this in classrooms compared to just ten years ago. a, books, b, chalk, or c, animal dissections. we'll reveal the answer during the 6:00 hour.

welcome back. 4:55. your weather first on this tuesday morning. it's a balmy one. the showers east and west of town are pulling away. temperatures rise toward 07 by noon. low -- 70 by noon. low 70s by 1:00. mid- to upper 70s this afternoon. may flirt with 80 in a few spots. late this afternoon a couple of showers and thunderstorms returning to the region. back to you. just days after trading for the second pick in the upcoming draft, redskins and their fans learned the team will have less money than expected to spend during free agency. the n.f.l. says the skins front loaded too many contracts in the uncapped 2010 season. as a result the skins will lose $36 million in cap space over the next two years. the cowboys will lose $10 million. almost every other team will gain $1.6 million because the league cannot take away salaries from the players. it's a huge hit for a team that

could have big implications for the future. very few of us ever come close to getting every game right when filling out our brackets so what are the odds of predicting the perfect tournament. one expert says if you fill out a bracket with every possibility, the amount of paper would not fit inside the universe. >> wow. >> so what are the odds of finding perfection? this professor says if you used a coin to pick a winner in every game, the odds are one in 100 trillion million. that's a lot of zeros. lots and lots and it won't happen. that's all. >> sure. fans began camping out in los angeles ahead of the highly anticipated premier. >> the fans lined up at 6:00 a.m. sunday. they all received wrist bands to attend last night's premier. ed lawrence was there.

>> reporter: some people called "the hunger names" the next craze. >> we don't have magic and vampires. it's human being put in real dire situations. as a human, it's hard to read a story like that and not put yourself in that shoe. >> reporter: it centers around a society that forces children to fight each other to the death. the battles are televised to the nation. fans went crazy when the stars hit itself black carpet for the world remere. jennifer lawrence who plays the main character says fans love it because of the story itself. >> it's a great story of good overcoming evil. >> reporter: josh hutchison says the dark subject matter in the books didn't turn anyone off. >> it can be dark but it's about hope. >> reporter: all of these fans, hundreds of them waited in line more than a day to see the

premiere. is it worth it? >> yeah. i'm here. >> reporter: the first 400 people received wrist bands to be among the first to see the movie. >> reading the book is a great experience. a whole bunch of adventure, suspense and the characters, they really come to life. >> reporter: "the hunger games" opens everywhere march 23. >> it's a series of books written by suzanne collins. >> i agree with you, creeps me out. good morning. thank you for watching 9news now at 5:00 a.m. i'm andrea roane. i'm mike hydeck. the lovely monika santami is live on the road. she'll have traffic in a moment. right now howard bernstein is here with weather. the roads are a little damp but will dry out soon. >> showers are leaving us south and east of town so we'll dry out the roads. this afternoon it will be late spring like, more like may, almost june as